Precious Illusions
by Sorielle Kenricson
Summary: Twelve years tore apart true love, and Aryana Black swore to bring back sweet memories of a love that was lost. Embarking on adventures with Captain Jack Sparrow and Will Turner, she gets in way over her head. Ary & Jack, Ary & Will.
1. Mercy Kiss

_Precious Illusions_

Chapter One: Mercy Kiss

**AN**: Um, thanks for visiting this story! I've been thinking of when I'd be starting a Pirates of the Caribbean one...And I guess there's no time like the present! I guess what really spurned me on is the fact that I just went to the Premiere the other night, and it was phenomenal. Anyhow, this story is about a made-up character of mine, Aryana Black, and her heart and her feelings and stuff...And the adventures, of course, she has with the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow and William Turner. So, enjoy! I have pictures of my darling Ary, but I won't grace you with them 'till next chapter, so sit tight!

He's visited me since before I can remember, but since I can remember, he's made my heart stop dead in it's tracks and turn flips. Yeah, he's almost twice my age. Yeah, he's pretty much a dirty cad who's the last person a girl should ever fall in love, and _yeah_, he's not really the kind of man to be pinned in a relationship, especially by someone almost half his junior. But I can't help this stupid heart of mine.

My name is Aryana, Aryana Josephine-Felice Black. I'm nothing special, just a fish-monger's daughter. I never thought myself anything extraordinary, but something kept him coming back to visit. Something kept him coming back, once every few months, to bring me gifts or just to say hello. Most of the time he had his good friend, Bootstrap Bill Turner with him, but one day when I was about seven or eight, he told me that Bootstrap wasn't going to come back anymore.

Jack Sparrow never told me why he kept coming back to visit me, he never answered me when I asked him what was so special about me, except for the last time he came to see me. I was only fifteen, and I was scared and unsure of myself. My boyfriend at the time, a fisherman like my father, had run off with a whore from Tortuga, and Jack was the only one I _knew _would understand my pain. So he came to see me, a surprise visit he said, and found that I was in pieces.

I can still remember that day. He took me out to see his ship, the Black Pearl, and his crew was all very courteous. Jack later told me that evening that they were only courteous because he told them that if they weren't, he would hang them by their bootstraps. It made me laugh a little, to see him trying so hard to make me laugh. He took me around his ship and showed me the rooms, the kitchens, and helped me around, making sure I didn't slip on the water that had tossed overboard from the rough voyage over.

For a long time, there was a little bit of awkward silence between us as we looked over the water from the crow's nest. It got cold quickly up there, and so Jack offered me his arms. I sat there for a long time, just looking out over the water in Jack's arms. He smelled like rum and the ocean, a combination that most would find disgusting and vile, but I found comforting and soothing. Now, I'm not much of a poet, but Jack made me feel poetic.

We sat there until nearly sundown, when Jack took me down and we stood by the harbor. I can remember it only one way, and I'm sure he remembers it differently. Older people, I've found, imagine things differently. I can say this in confidence with you all because I've asked him how he remembers it, and he always tells it differently. This is how I remember it. I remember him standing with his hands on my shoulders, a sad smile on his face as he let out a giant sigh. The khol lining around his eyes had smudged slightly from a salty sweat that trickled down his cheek sweetly. Jack pulled me into a hug, something he never did. I wondered what was going on.

Pulling me from his grip and holding me at arm's length again, he looked down at me, a much more serious expression. "I won't be coming back again, Ary," He said, very quietly. I was shocked into silence. I think a tear might have fallen from my eye, because I remember him stroking something wet from my cheek. Then he hugged me again and held me for a short period of time before pulling away from me and turning away. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the dying sun. "I can't risk it...I think I love you, and it's not good for me anymore."

Well that was the last straw for me. I fell into a broken stream of sobs, even though there were very few tears that fell then. "I can't take one more person leaving me Jack. Tell me you'll come back, please." I pleaded with him, begged him, but he wouldn't budge. "No love, I _can't_ come back, and this is something you'll understand when you get older." Well, I'm older now I realize, and I still don't understand why he did it. "I won't ever forgive you Jack Sparrow," I threatened. Even as I look back on this, an old bitty in a salty sea-cabin, I figure I really never did forgive him. You see, old wounds die hard with me, and even though I do truly hate to admit it, I am a grudge carrier.

That's when he turned around, and I remember the expression on his face. It was sweet sorrow. He pulled me close to his chest and he kissed me. It wasn't anything big, just a kiss on the lips, tender and true. His beard tickled my chin, and when I felt tears on my cheeks again, I turned around and ran back towards my village. He didn't follow me, and he never came back.

**AN**: Okay, so that was PITIFUL. I promise next chapter will be like...Ten times better, and it also won't be in first person. I absolutely _hate _writing in first person, it's **such** a bitch, haha. Okay, so next chapter...Get ready for some craziness.


	2. Everybody Here Wants You

_Precious Illusions_

Chapter Two: Everybody Here Wants You

Jack Sparrow stared out at the ocean. Will noticed immediately that Jack was in one of his moods again. It was that time of the month, always around the same time he had also realized, that Jack would stare out at the ocean completely silent, with the grimmest expression on his face. It was almost as if he was remembering something very distant that pained him to remember. Will cleared his throat and Jack turned around unsteadily, a grim line set on his lips. "Jack," Will started, "We're nearing Port Isabella. I...Just thought you should know." Jack nodded, resting his hand on Will's shoulder before the tiniest of smiles came to light up his face. "Aye."

The morning sun shone over the oncoming rock of an island. It was sturdy, with one of the most established Naval Bases around and also one of the most established Villa's around. The governor was a strange and quiet man named Arthur Kent, and his daughter, Arabella Kent was just as strange and quiet. The pair never really left the Villa and they came to be known as hermits, slaves to their estate. However, this was all day life. Come out at night and Port Isabella was a much more low-key Tortuga minus the whores.

Of course that was why Jack had chosen Port Isabella as their next stop. He wanted the cool night life that came with Port Isabella, he wanted the rum and the gin and the beautiful women who weren't whores but would almost certainly fall in love with him and agree to take him into their beds. He wanted the distraction from the haunting memories of the pretty little fifteen year old girl with stunning golden hair and eyes like the ocean that he loved. He didn't think it was right, of course he didn't think it was right, that she was still in his head after so long. He had left for the purpose of forgetting her, but he had _never _forgotten her. It was almost impossible.

He frowned again, but then turned on his heel and nimbly maneuvered his way up the netting that led to his crow's nest. He screwed his eyes up in his face as he held his brown hand up to his eyes, shielding the light from burning him. There was the rock, there the villa, perched on the cliffs like a beautiful ghost of a bird. That was what made him smile, the monstrosity of the estate and the people bustling around the docks. He noticed the light that was disappearing from behind those massive cliffs, and a smile lit his tanned face. It was already almost time for the people to come out and play. Night was almost upon them.

By the time they were in port, the moon was high in the sky, a silver giant that loomed over the island and smiled down on them. He swayed down the alleys, Will by his side, clutching an empty bottle of rum in his left hand. He smiled suggestively at a young woman passing by, and called out in his slurred voice, "Allo darling...Be a good gal and tell ol' Cap'n Jack where there might be a pub 'round here, will ye?" The girl tittered nervously and pointed timidly down the alley. "Turn right and you'll be face to face with a pub called the Rusty Lantern. Good luck!" She called, giggling and running the rest of the way down the alley. Port Isabella would be even better then he imagined.

Rubbing his hands together he slung his arm around Will's shoulder and the pair marched off down the alley, singing something to the effect of, "Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life fer me..." It was terribly off-key, and it lilted disgustingly in the thick, muggy night air. They laughed as they barged into the pub. There were a few people who looked their way, but nothing really exciting was taking place just yet. It was perfectly normal, at least for Port Isabella, for the pubs not to really light up until the entertainment came out.

So they sat there for a while, talking in hushed voices and hoping to cause some controversy to get things really going, when the lights dimmed over a small wooden stage in the back. The kerosene was turned down to almost nothing, and the stage was black, when make-shift curtains pulled back and the kerosene was turned back up. There, in the middle of the stage, was the one person Jack had been trying in vain to get out of his mind, only she was twelve years older and much more attractive.

Aryana Black wore a red and white striped bodice and a full white skirt, her brown boots cinched up to past her knees. Her thick golden hair was pulled back out of her face, and her cheeks were rouged with some cream. Lips were a crimson red, and her thick ashen lashes were pointed down to some lonely naval officer in the front. It seemed like before she was to start her act, she flirted with the lonely officer. That was when the music started up, and Aryana gazed out at her audience.

"Love isn't funny when it's burning inside...When all you think of is how to get through the night. And when you want it, it's just a game that you play. And when you get it, they're going to take it away...Maybe it's nothing, maybe it's all just in my mind. Maybe I'm foolish, maybe it's just a waste of time. But I don't think so, maybe I definitely know that maybe, maybe I'm in love."

She smiled and set her narrow foot on the table in front of the lonely officer, resting her hand on his hat and picking it up, setting it on her head. Jack's heart almost stopped right there. How many times had she done that to him, stealing his hat and setting it on her head. But she was different now, that much was certain. Her eyes seemed brighter, her smile more beautiful, her face more mature. Well of course all these things were more beautiful, she was _older_. He was still in love, and she had forgotten him. Or had she?

"So if you want it, you want to come out to play, then you can have it cause he's got plans for the day. And if I want it, there's not one out there for me, when you don't need it, there's plenty of fish in the sea. Maybe it's nothing, maybe it's all just in my mind. Maybe I'm foolish, maybe it's just a waste of time. But I don't think so, maybe I definitely know. Why do I keep fooling myself, why can't I let go? This is not like me, but now I definitely see, that maybe, maybe I'm in love."

Jack was almost ready to get up and walk out the door, and Will cast a concerned glance at his friend. "Are you alright Jack?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowed. Jack laughed uncertainly and shrugged. "I'm fine." That was when she looked at him. Right in the face, she looked at him and her whole body went rigid. The music continued, but she stopped singing. It seemed like time had stopped. Someone to the left of her shouted at her to keep singing, and so she cleared her throat and smiled apologetically, but her eyes never left his face.

"But I don't think so, maybe I definitely know. Why do I keep fooling myself, why can't I let go? This is _not _like me, but now I definitely see that maybe, maybe I'm in love. Love isn't funny when it's burning inside. When all you think of is how to get through the night. And when you want it, it's just a game that you play. And when you get it, they're going to take it away. Maybe it's nothing, maybe it's all just in my mind. Maybe I'm foolish, maybe it's just a waste of time. But I don't think so, maybe I definitely know. Why do I keep fooling myself, why can't I let go? This is notlike me, but now I definitely see that maybe, maybe I'm in love."

The crowd that had gathered in the pub cheered for her, and she smiled slightly and curtsied like her mother had taught her to. Stepping down from the stage, she tried to find anywhere to go, anywhere except near Jack, but she couldn't help but notice that there was an empty chair beside his friend, who looked a lot like Bootstrap Bill.

Waving mildly at the people she passed by, shaking a few hands and laughing slightly as they told her how wonderful she was, she took a seat beside Will. "Good evening gents. You two are new around here, no?" Her voice had matured too, he noted, as he looked at her and narrowed his eyes. She had a chocolate voice, he reckoned, smooth and rich and delicious. "Aye, we're new around here, love." Aryana narrowed her eyes and then smiled. "The name's Aryana, Aryana Black. Who might _you _be?" She asked, offering her slender hand to Will. He smiled his devastating smile and shook her hand. "The name's William Turner." Aryana looked slightly surprised but just shook it off and shook his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you William. And who are you?" She asked Jack, who just sighed. "You know who I am Ary..." Her smile faded.

"Hello Jack."

**AN**: Dun dun dun...And the plot thickens! Haha. If you want Ary's picture, please IM me or Email me. Thanks.  
Read and Review!


	3. Gold To Me

_Precious Illusions_

Chapter Three: Gold To Me

Will looked at them both, apparently confused. "You two know each other?" He asked, and Aryana looked at him. "Not anymore. He used to visit me, it's a long story. But I haven't seen or heard from him in _twelve _years." The tone of her voice was steely and cold, and she watched Will for a moment, taking note of the crisp structure of his face, the even tan, those deep brown eyes that seemed to sparkle in the light of the kerosene lamps. He was just like his father, only with a different edge. "I...See..." He was at a loss for words. What were the odds of running into one of Jack's old acquaintances, really? And it was twisted that Jack had visited her when she didn't seem a day older than he was.

"That's right, Ary. I don't know you anymore." Jack's voice broke the strange silence that had fallen in around them, and Aryana looked at him, her brows furrowed and her lips pulled into a tight frown. "What are you trying to say Jack? That I'm the one who left you. You didn't visit, just like you told me you wouldn't. I'm surprised I even had hope after you told me that. You are a lowly piece of dirt for leaving me when I needed you most Jack Sparrow, do you know that?" Her voice had an edge of anger, and her face had contorted in rage. She was still beautiful though, and in fact her beauty was enhanced by her anger, but what she wasn't expecting was for Jack to just give up so easily. It was a mystery to her. _He _was a mystery to her.

"I know, Ary. You have to believe me when I tell you that I know." His words...He actually articulated each syllable, and it made her stomach flip uncomfortably. "Don't pull any of that with me Jack. I told you I wouldn't forgive you, and I still haven't." She was almost of the verge of tears, and her thick blonde hair bounced around her face, for after her performance she had nervously pulled it down. Will looked at her, almost in awe that she could be so unforgiving and cold, and yet still so beautiful and inviting. He wanted to reach out and touch her hair and run it through his hands like the gold silk that it was. She was like gold to him.

"Why don't I...Buy us some drinks?" Will offered, and Aryana glanced at him gratefully for breaking that uncomfortable funk. Her blue eyes settled graciously on the table top, and she rested her cheek in her slender hand. Will noticed the way her chin wobbled slightly when she was about to cry, and the way her hair fell around her face like she had just been blown in from the open door. He smiled slightly, and as a busty bar maid came around to take their orders, Ary caught that scent of ocean and rum that had once made her so comfortable. Her eyes watered, and she sat up in her chair, glancing at Jack. Did she _really _still love him, after all he had put her through. It wasn't entirely impossible, she knew full well. She knew she had loved him that day on the docks, that day he had kissed her so tenderly it was almost sweet. And it was really wrong, she knew, that she had kissed him. She had only been fifteen, he had been twenty-seven, and it was just plain _wrong_. But why did it feel so **right**?

Shaking her head slightly as the wench came back around and set the two rums and Ary's gin on the table in front of them, she looked up to find the bar maid staring at Will like a piece of fine meat. "Hey," She said, her voice having an edge of contempt, "If we don't have drinks to order, you don't have room to be staring at them like they're your next course. So get out of here, or you'll be in trouble." The woman's face swelled with anger, and she puffed out her chest like a blow-fish. "Who will I be in trouble with, eh?" She threatened, and Ary stood up from her chair, pushing it out with her heeled foot and getting right in the woman's face, even though she was several inches shorter. "Me, that's who." The bar maid laughed and poked Ary roughly in the stomach, testing her strength. Aryana took both hands and shoved the bar maid so that she stumbled backwards in a flurry of breasts and ruddy flesh. "Now _leave, _before I show you just how strong I really am."

The bar maid left with a harumph and a string of broken curses, and Aryana settled back down in her chair, her hair a halo of gold around her face. Jack looked at her appreciatively, but she didn't return the glance. "You could have assisted you know. I'm not the only one sitting here at this table, I think." Jack just shrugged and took a swig of his rum, his face contorting slightly as the amber liquid sizzled down his throat. "Ye seemed to be handlin' her quite nicely by yerself love." Aryana rolled her eyes and took a dainty sip of her gin. She was ladylike in every manner, Will seemed to notice.

It was odd, how even when he had been in the thick of love with Elizabeth, he never studied her like he studied Aryana. She was a mystery to him, a mystery that he wanted to solve. Her face was beautiful, _she _was beautiful, but that wasn't all there was to her, he thought. He wanted to know what she was like, know what her dreams were, and above all he wanted her to want him. It was really strange that he found himself thinking of all these things when he didn't even know her. It was Jack that she watched most intensely, and Will found himself envying his friend for the first time since he had met him. Will wanted Aryana to watch _him_ like that. Taking a swig of his rum, a newfound love of his, he cleared his throat and watched as her serene blue eyes swiveled to meet his, a smile pricking her lips. "So what are you boys doing in Port Isabella anyway?" She asked, her voice soft for the first time.

Jack looked at her, his eyebrows knitting together in concentration. "I could be askin ye the same question love." He tended to call her love more then anything else, but occasionally, she noted, he would throw in darling, like the old days. "Jack don't make this anymore personal than this already has to be. I'll make the answer short, alright?" Jack shrugged his shoulders plainly in agreement. "After you left, I waited for five years, and when I figured you really weren't coming back, I traveled with a band of pirates, under the black flag and all. They dropped me here." She nodded slightly in tune with her story and took another ladylike sip of her gin. Jack's mouth fell open and he laughed. "You traveled with salty old pirates?" Aryana crooked a brow and sat back in her chair. "Aye," She answered, smiling slightly. Will threw one of his heartbreaking smiles at her, and for an instant her stomach fluttered. What was getting into her?

"Well then, I have a proposition to make, and you listen good lass." Jack sat up straighter in his chair and cast a furtive glance at Will, who suddenly sobered up and wiped the smile off his face. "You're really going to drag her into this, Jack? Are you sure?" Jack just shrugged. "If she wants." Aryana was still pressed against the back of the chair, trying to remain as calm and indifferent as possible, yet something in the tone of Will's voice made her think that maybe Jack was trying to get her into something that wasn't for the benefit of her better health. "I'm listening," She said quietly. Jack smiled his toothy smile and rubbed his hands together. "Will and I are gatherin' a crew. We're sailin' to Asia, or somewhere along the likes of it we figure...There's treasure there, Ary. Treasue no one's touched, they say...What do ye say lass. Join our crew?"

**AN**: God, I'm sorry for all these cliff-hangers, hah. I know, I'm a terrible terrible person. But I figure, with the updates coming as often as they do, you guys don't have to wait TOO long to see what happens, right? Keep the Reviews coming, please! They give me something to read and smile about. Thanks!


	4. Captain Splendid

_Precious Illusions_

Chapter Four: Captain Splendid

Aryana's mouth fell open. "I thought it was bad luck to have a woman on board." Her words were clean and she folded her arms over her chest. "It'd be worse luck _not _to 'ave you, Ary." Jack looked at her, and there was an unreadable expression on his smooth, tan face. Aryana's heart skipped a beat, and she bit her painted lower lip. "Is that all there is to it Jack? Are you sure that we're not talking about some other death-defying antics I might have to do to keep myself in one piece?"

Will cleared his throat nervously and eyed Jack, knowing that Jack was leaving out so much of the tale that it was almost pain-staking to listen to him con Aryana into it. But Will wanted Ary there so much, even if it did mean putting her in a dangerous situation. Besides, she said she had been on a ship with pirates before, which meant she had to have some knowledge of weapons. She could hold her own, right?

Jack nodded. "Absolutely love. Now, wha' do ye say? Do we 'ave an accord?" Jack held out his heavily adorned hand to Aryana, who shook it. "We have an accord, Jack Sparrow." She closed her eyes slightly. What was she getting herself into?

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Swinging herself up onto the deck of the ship, Aryana looked around, glassy-eyed and exhausted. The ship was exactly as it had looked such a long time ago, when she had last seen Jack. Where was that scoundrel anyway? Oh, there he was. Jack pounced up beside her, (can you _not _imagine Jackie-boy **pouncing**?) holding a small golden necklace in his hand. "I 'ad this for ye last time I came ta visit ye, jus' forgot it on board s'all." He handed it to her, pressing it into her palm. "'Appy Birthday, Ary." Aryana looked at the locket in her hand and smirked. "You remembered?" She asked. "I 'ave twelve giff's 'round 'ere somewhere. I got one fer ye every year."

Will watched the two enviously. He watched the way Aryana's face lit up when Jack talked to her, the way her body seemed to sway closer to his when he talked about her. It was so hard to watch them like that. He could feel his gut twisting slightly and he scrunched up his nose unpleasantly. "Aryana," He called out, holding up his hand. She turned around to face him, her blonde curls swaying until they fell in her face. "Yes, Will," She said, a small smile on her lips. "Aryana, where are you going to...sleep?" He asked, a poor excuse for getting her attention, he knew. Jack watched Will quietly, wondering what he was up to. "Is she sleeping in your cabin, Jack?" Will asked, his eyebrows furrowing slightly, hoping against hopes that Jack would say no.

"No, she isn't lad. I 'aven't got any room in me quarters as it were." Aryana looked at Jack. Since when had he had no room in his quarters? The way she remembered it, he had _plenty _of room in his quarters for plain wenches and scrumpets, but now that it came down to somebody who had once really mattered to him, he couldn't offer up a tiny space in his bed. How's that for fond memories? "Well aren't you just the greatest man in the world? Might as well call you Captain Splendid from now on," She said, her voice biting with annoyance. Aryana looked at Will, a hopeful glint in her eyes. "Since ol' Cap'n Jack Sparrow is deciding to be a cur, would you mind housing a lovely lady such as myself?" She said, the persuasive smile touching her lips. Will nodded in agreement to her words. "Of course. I wouldn't leave a lady out in the open to die from catching cold."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Well aren't you both jus' a lovely little bundle've joy?" He commented snidely before walking away to his own quarters. Aryana looked absolutely puzzled. "I have _no _idea what's got into him, honestly. _He's _the one who can't muster up enough space in his bed for an old aquaitance, and then he gets mad at _you_ for giving up some room in yours? How rude..." She shook her head, and now it was her time to roll her eyes. "Well, I suppose that's just Jack for you. What do you say you show me to your cabin then, eh?" Will nodded, hooking his arm delightedly through hers like her escort, and walked her down the deck and down a flight of stairs. "It's a little small, and not decorated very nicely, but I _do _hope that you don't find it too unbearable. It gets a bit warm in the mornings as well."

Aryana shrugged. "I know how ships can be, trust me. I don't get cabin fever none too easily now, so don't you worry about me." She was a fine woman, that much was certain, Will thought to himself.

**AN**: Ugh, it was short, yeah? Oh well...I hope it wasn't _too _short to keep your attention span going, but I thought it wasn't going anywhere, so I decided to stop. Anyways, like always, read and review! There might be some _action _happening in the next chapter, if you know what I mean!


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